The District Attorney who refused to prosecute JonBenet Ramsey's parents did so because he was 'too scared' to put them on trial, it was claimed today.

Alex Hunter did not indict John and Patsy Ramsey because he was 'in over his head', said Donald Davis, who co-authored one of the most authoritative books about what happened.

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Mr Davis said that Mr Hunter was 'embarrassed' at the prospect of losing one of the most high profile cases in recent memory - so decided not to go forward with it instead.

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Cold case: John and Patsy Ramsey, the parents of murdered beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, were indicted by a grand jury over her death, but prosecutors refused to press charges, it has been revealed

Unsolved: Six-year-old JonBenet was found bludgeoned and strangled to death in the basement of her home in Boulder, Colorado, on Christmas Day in 1996

Mr Davis co-wrote ‘JonBenet: Inside the Ramsey Murder Investigation’ with Steve Thomas, one of the detectives in Boulder, Colorado who investigated JonBenet's death.

He was speaking out after it emerged that back in 1999 a Colorado grand jury voted to indict the Ramseys on charges of child abuse resulting in death, a felony that can carry up to 48 years in prison.

JonBenet, six, was found bludgeoned and strangled to death in the basement of her home in Boulder on Boxing Day in 1996.

Sources, including members of the grand jury, told theBoulder Daily Camera that Mr Hunter refused to sign the indictment vote and never publicly revealed its decision.

As a result Mr and Mrs Ramsey remained suspects until finally being exonerated in 2008. No-one has ever been convicted.

Mr Davis’s comments threaten to re-open wounds that have barely begun to heal despite the passage of 14 years.

Experts: Mr Davis co-wrote ‘JonBenet: Inside the Ramsey Murder Investigation’ with Steve Thomas, one of the detectives in Boulder, Colorado who investigated JonBenet's death

He has never spoken publically about Mr Hunter but said that ‘this would be about the way I would expect it to finally come down’.

He told MailOnline: ‘Mr Hunter was scared. He was in over his head.

‘He didn’t want to take these people into the courtroom. He was embarrassed they might be set free.'

Mr Davis said that Mr Hunter was ‘known as Mr Plea Bargain around here (Boulder).’

He said: ‘He wasn’t ready for anything beyond that’.

Mr Davis’s book with former cop Steve Thomas was arguably the most sensational about the entire case.

Mr Thomas quit the investigation in 1998 and wrote a scathing letter about Mr Hunter which he made public and explained in depth in the book.

His resignation letter reads: ‘It is difficult to imagine a more compelling situation for the appointment of an entirely independent prosecution team to be introduced into this matter, who would oversee an attempt at righting this case’.

Mr Davis said that Mr Thomas is now ‘living quietly with his wife and a little girl’.

He said: ‘He doesn’t want anything to do with this. He feels that a huge injustice was done. I agree with him’.

'Last picture': JonBenet with her mother, apparently on the morning of her death. Her parents remained suspects in the murder until finally being exonerated in 2008

Horrific: JonBenet was found with her wrists tied above her head and duct tape over her mouth

In a sign of how strong feelings are on the other side, a lawyer for Mr Ramsey, whose wife died of ovarian cancer in 2006, said that Mr Hunter and his staff were actually courageous for what they did.

Attorney Bryan Morgan said: 'If what you report actually happened, then there were some very professional and brave people in Alex’s office.'

Hunter, who left office in 2001 after 28 years as Boulder County's district attorney, has declined to discuss the grand jury's actions.

In 1999 when he announced the end of investigation, he said: 'I and my prosecution task force believe we do not have sufficient evidence to warrant a filing of charges against anyone who has been investigated at this time.'

It is unclear whether Mr Hunter was required to sign the indictment.

However, one expert told the Daily Camera that in her opinion proper legal procedure would have been to sign the document and file it with the court before going to open court to dismiss the charges.

Defending accusations: Patsy and John Ramsey hold a picture of their daughter during a press conference in 2000 where they released the results of an independent lie detector test, which revealed they had no knowledge of who killed their daughter

In a statement Mr Hunter told the Daily Camera: 'Colorado statutes, the ethical canons which govern the practice of law, and the Boulder District Court's oaths, instructions and orders in the JonBenet Ramsey grand jury proceedings, are well established and absolutely clear with respect to the various participants' legal obligations, duties and responsibilities, including the inviolate secrecy of the proceedings and the differing burdens of proof applicable to jurors and prosecutors.

'As the duly elected district attorney at the time and as an officer of the court then and now, I must respectfully decline further comment.'

It was on Christmas Day of 1996 that the Ramseys received a ransom note saying that JonBenet had been kidnapped and that the kidnappers were demanding $118,000 - the amount of a bonus Mr Ramsey had recently received - or else she would be beheaded.

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It was not long before her body was found in the basement of the house.

Her wrists were tied above her head, and she had duct tape over her mouth.

An autopsy report revealed that she had been strangled and bludgeoned to death.

Within hours, the Ramseys themselves became the chief suspects of the investigation and police were later criticised for losing focus of the crime scene and other leads by concentrating on the family - including JonBenet's brother Burke - instead of following up other leads.

16 YEARS AND NO BREAKTHROUGH

Boxing Day, 1996: JonBenet found bludgeoned to death in the basement of her home in Boulder, Colorado

Boulder Police quickly placed her parents,John and Patsy Ramsey, under an 'umbrella of suspicion' but they were never formally named as suspects

Detectives were later criticised for losing focus of the crime scene and other leads by concentrating on the family

2003: DNA taken from the victim's clothes suggests the family were not involved

2006: Patsy Ramsey dies of ovarian cancer

August 2006: Former teacher John Mark Karr reportedly confesses to the murder while being held on child pornography charges.

But no murder charge brought after his DNA found not to match that on JonBenet's body

2008: Boulder district attorney's office clears parents of any wrongdoing and issues apology

February 2009: Boulder Police Department takes the case back from the district attorney to reopen the investigation

He eventually found happiness through his relationship with fashion designer Jan Rousseaux, who he married at a private ceremony in Charlevoix, Michigan, in July 2011.

Last year, a former detective officially broke his silence over the investigation, saying that overlooked clues like cobwebs and a child's toy could prove important in finding the killer in the high-profile cold case.